Develop sustainable farming in rural South Africa

Our latest update is a success story from the rural community of KwaHhohho where a group of 21 women have a pooled their resources to start a community garden.

With training from Biowatch and supporters like you, the community garden now serves as way to generate income to support their families and to share information with neighbors about growing food from traditional seeds.

Mrs. Mncube is the Treasurer of the group. As Treasurer, she is responsible for keeping track of the collective income earned by the group’s surplus vegetable production.

Mrs. Mncube lives in KwaHhohho with her husband and her 4 children. She spends her days tending to her own garden as well as contributing to the community plot. When her children come home from school, they assist her in the garden. Each child has a small plot to tend to. Mrs. Mncube wants to pass down her knowledge to them.

KwaHhohho is situated approximately 35 kilometers from the closest town. Mrs. Mncube, along with the other members, must take public transportation into town in order to try and sell the surplus produce from the community garden. Although in town, it is sometimes difficult to sell their produce as the market is saturated; nonetheless, she is able to earn additional and much-needed income for her family.

Before Biowatch, Mrs. Mncube only planted a small plot but she now has a large garden growing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Through training from Biowatch, she has learned about non-chemical farming methods. She has also come to appreciate the importance of traditional agriculture as she has improved the soil on her land through methods such as composting.

With your support, more women like Mrs. Mncube can receive training to start their own gardens!